Item: Xero
Rating: 10
Author: Nicholas Fenmor Collins

Use Cases and Deployment Scope

We use Xero for full accountancy and payroll. It's connected to several apps to allow us to manage expenses and cashflow. We were an early adopter of Xero and introduced our accountants to it. We love the clarity and flexibility (with control) that Xero gives us...and it's so cost effective too.

Pros and Cons

Reconciliation
Connectivity
Reporting

Statement automation
Expenses
Accessing Xero's own invoices

Return on Investment

Better cashflow tracking
improved aged debtor management
Huge amount of time saved with banking

Usability

It works really well and is always being improved. On eof the most important factors with software is reliability, and this is particularly true when it comes to accounting software. In my 9 or so years with Xero there has been minimal downtime and most importantly, no data loss or corruption...it's a super solid platform!

Cloud Costs

We've saved days of effort each month since implementing Xero. We now have a part time book keeper, vs a full time one when the business was smaller. Xero makes reconciliation a cinch, connects to our bank beautifully to pull all transactions. The repeat invoice functionality helps us to further save time especially as we're connected to GoCardless so the funds are drawn too.

Ease of Integration

integrates very well with most mainstream banking systems. The payroll side of the system auto submits our data to the hmrc and our pension provider making things super simple. It also handles the VAT really neatly needing us to simply check and submit each quarter. We're also integrated with Cashflow Frog which allow us to forcast cashflow based on our Xero data and potential scenarios.

Alternatives Considered

QuickBooks Online

Just simpler and has a cleaner interface. I would say that quickbooks is designed for less savvy business owners, but that makes it slower to use than Xero. I'm not suggesting that Xero is hard to use, it's really simple, but it does assume you have a level of financial competency which makes it quicker to use.

Key Insights

Do you think Xero delivers good value for the price?

Yes

Are you happy with Xero's feature set?

Yes

Did Xero live up to sales and marketing promises?

Yes

Did implementation of Xero go as expected?

Yes

Would you buy Xero again?

Yes

Other Software Used

Siteglide, Adobe PhotoShop

Likelihood to Recommend

All size businesses can benefit, but it particularly suited to SMEs who need to streamline their procedures and connect data across multiple applications and various bank accounts. The multi-currency feature is great even if paying software licences in dollars for example. Xero is less suited should you need to manage stock from the platform, but most businesses would connect a dedicated app to handle this side of things.

simply the best accounting software platform.

Overall Satisfaction with Xero